I’m changing a water heater”: When is the deadline for applications – How will you receive a subsidy of up to 900 euros

Until June 20th, the electronic platform of the “Recycle – Change Water Heater” program (opened on May 11th) will be open for applications.

Through the program, it is estimated that 120,000 Greek households will receive a subsidy for the replacement of energy-consuming electric water heaters with new solar water heaters of modern technology. The benefit for them and also for the environment will be the reduction of at least 200 thousand tons of CO2 per year. As it is also calculated, that the electricity consumption for the use of hot water is to be reduced by approximately 65%.

In order to receive the subsidy for the purchase of a new solar water heater, it is mandatory to retire the old water heaters, which must be functional.

The income limit per family member is 30,000 euros per year and the subsidy is up to 60% of the purchase cost of the new solar water heater. Installation costs are also included in the maximum grant amount for the beneficiaries.

Solar water heaters: The income criteria

The program provides subsidies based on three income levels and the capacity of the water heater to be replaced:

• For the first category with income up to 5,000 euros the subsidy amounts to 60% and a maximum amount of 904.84 euros for water heaters over 186 liters, 771.77 euros for water heaters of 136-185 liters and 612.10 euros for water heaters of 110-135 liters.
• For the second category, with an income between 5,000 and 10,000 euros, the subsidy amounts to 55% and at 829.84 euros for a water heater over 186 liters, at 707.26 for a 136-185 liter water heater and at 561.29 euros for a 11-135 liter water heater.
• In the third category, finally, with income over 10,000 and up to 30,000 euros, the subsidy amounts to 50% and the maximum amount at 754.03 euros for a water heater over 186 liters, at 634.55 euros for a capacity of 136-185 liters and at 510.48 euros for a capacity of 110-135 liters.

In order to receive the subsidy for the purchase of a new solar water heater, it is mandatory to withdraw for recycling the old water heaters that are being replaced, the characteristics of which are:

• To be functional before their withdrawal.
• Before their replacement, they must be placed in the residence declared in the financing application.
• To be electric water heaters with a capacity of ≥ 40 litres.

Beneficiaries

In order to join the program, the beneficiaries must:

• To be domestic consumers who will have an electric water heater installed in their residence (and not in a business place).
• Applications must be submitted by individual natural persons, who were born before January 1, 2006 and reside permanently in Greece.
• Only one application should be submitted by each natural person.
• The average annual income per family member of the eligible beneficiaries should not exceed 30,000 euros.
• The potential beneficiaries have not submitted an application or have joined another energy saving program, such as “Execonomou – Autonomou” or “Execonomou 2021”.

Reinforcement height

• The subsidy is up to 60% of the purchase cost of each new solar water heater.
• Each beneficiary will receive a voucher, which they can redeem at a supplier of their choice.
• Installation costs are also included in the maximum grant amount for the beneficiaries.
• The final value of each check depends on the characteristics of the solar water heater (hot water tank capacity) and its purchase price